


What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

by greenbeele



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette, F/M, High School, LadyNoir - Freeform, Party
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-16
Updated: 2018-06-28
Packaged: 2018-12-02 20:15:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11516649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greenbeele/pseuds/greenbeele
Summary: Alya drags Marinette out to a party and there are unexpected results.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly this fic was born out of a stupid thought I had about ice cream in a fever dream state at 4am. But I hope you like it. :)

“Have you ever wondered why society has called ice cream the all-time breakup food?” Marinette looked down at her near empty pint of rocky road and gave Alya her signature “What the fuck are you talking about" look (patent pending). “Like, I guess it could be the whole something to freeze your broken heart or some poetic shit like that. Plus it does help that it’s delicious…” Alya said as she waved around her spoon and Marinette tried in vain to dodge the missiles of melted ice cream hurtling off of it.

“But it feels too specific of a food you know? Like, I would much rather drown my sorrows in some pizza or mac and cheese instead of ice cream. Who decided that the whole pathetic, just been broken up with aesthetic is ice cream and trashy movies” she continued. “I get the need to wallow, but there are better ways to do it.”

Marinette sighed, “I’m getting the not so subtle feeling this whole rant is aimed at me. You know I haven’t broken up with anyone right? I just happen to enjoy eating ice cream and watching cheesy rom coms on Saturday nights.”

“Of course I know, you would have to actually date someone in order to break up with them. But alas, you’re too scared to make a move on Adrien to get anywhere in the dating department.” Alya said dramatically while she put her hand to her forehead as if she could not even imagine Marinette being so bold. “You do bring up an excellent point though. All we ever do on Saturday nights is stay in, why don’t we mix it up for a change? I heard Nino’s having a party tonight while his parents are out of town, we should go.”

Unfortunately, Alya wasn’t wrong, this was all Marinette ever did on weekends. It’s not like she didn’t have friends to spend time with but, she just preferred a quiet night in to a loud, sticky high school party. That typically meant she didn’t socialize much outside of school and hanging out with Alya. But honestly, Marinette was fine with how she was, between school, being Ladybug, and helping her parents in the bakery she was almost always exhausted so she thoroughly enjoyed the time to herself. It was peaceful not having to worry about saving Paris for a night since Hawkmoth never seemed to send an akuma out on Saturdays. Perhaps the saying were wrong and evil does take a vacation… or at least a night off.

Alya didn’t know about the stresses of Marinette’s double life but still insisted on staying in with her week after week, like the best friend that she was, so it had become their tradition. Nonetheless, Marinette couldn’t help but feel guilty. She knew Alya was just trying to have her go out and do new things to get that “high school experience”. Plus, Marinette was sure Alya had been dying to get off of the couch and go to Nino’s. Marinette looked to her television, staring at a movie she’d watched a hundred times and turned to face Alya. 

“Fine,” she said, “Let’s go.”

“Really!? I really didn’t think annoying into going would work.” She exclaimed. “This could be your chance to talk to Adrien! I heard he’s coming tonight. But before any of that, we need to change.” Alya was already heading up to Marinette’s room, still discussing various outfit combinations as well as strategies on how to make a “grand entrance” at the party.

Oh shit. Marinette may not have thought this through.

…

Marinette’s room looked like a disaster zone. Heaps of clothes or every color littered the floors, and Alya rifled through each and every one until she was satisfied with her choice. Marinette stared into her mirror and her reflection stared back, donning a black lacy crop top, shorts, and winged eyeliner courtesy of Alya. It was not what she would usually wear but leave it to Alya to pick the only clothes in Marinette’s closet that she had been too scared to wear outside of the house. 

Marinette saw Alya come up to her in the mirror, “Don’t worry Mari, you look fantastic. Tonight’s going to be great, Adrien won’t know what hit him.” Marinette blushed and resisted the urge to tug down her top. She could already feel the nerves getting to her.

Even after Alya left to change Marinette couldn’t stop worrying about tonight. “What if it’s a disaster?” she wondered out loud. 

Her little red friend zipped out of her purse, “Don’t worry Marinette, just try to have fun, you deserve it!” Tikki’s cheery voice chimed.

“Thanks, Tikki.” Just knowing her kwami would be there with her calmed Marinette down the smallest bit. Marinette took a deep breath, she could do this. She was Ladybug, after all, clearly, she could be able to handle a little high school party.


	2. Chapter 2

You would think the model found on many a Parisian billboard and the son of a fashion mogul would be able to dress for a simple high school party…. but you would be wrong. Adrien’s hands sat on the bathroom counter as he eyed himself in the mirror, unsure of how to go about getting ready for his first party. If you asked him how to get dressed for a black tie event, he was an expert. How to pick out the perfect pair of wingtip dress shoes for the red carpet, he was your man. Choosing a handkerchief that was specifically eggshell white and not a shade lighter, you betcha, he could do it. But the dress code of the new and mysterious world of teen parties alluded him.

“Adrien, stop worrying. You look like you’re about to pass out.” Plagg said, whizzing in front of the mirror to stare at Adrien face to face. Adrien pushed Plagg out of the way and grabbed a comb, determined to actually finish getting ready. “It’s not like this is a big deal anyway. Nino said to wear something casual. Besides, this doesn’t even seem like that much fun anyway, wouldn’t you rather stay home and I don’t know, eat some Camembert and take a nap?” Adrien scoffed, of course, food was the only thing on his kwami’s mind. But he did bring up a good point, Nino had said casual. Adrien dug into his closet and pulled out a white shirt and jeans.

Nino had seemed very surprised when Adrien actually accepted the invite to his party. Though to Nino’s credit, Adrien almost never went out on weekends. Saturday nights were typically reserved for dinners with his father (read: eating in silence across from each other at their egregiously long dining table). Saturdays were when his father planned and went over his overly packed schedule for the week including but not limited to Chinese classes, fencing, photo shoots etc. (whether Adrien wanted to or not). However, by some god given miracle, his father told Adrien he couldn’t make dinner tonight due to some important business meeting. Adrien had absolutely no qualms about this, it was his first real opportunity to experience the high school social scene outside of the movies. Even with his excitement, Adrien was still worried about how tonight would go.

To say Adrien was nervous was an understatement, he was sweating bullets. He _definitely_ did not feel ready for tonight but if not now, when? The whole point of transferring out of homeschooling was to have these teen experiences, to make memories, and this was his chance. He took a deep breath to calm himself down. He had friends at this party, it wouldn’t be that different from school, just a different setting and some music, what could go wrong? He felt himself calming down and walked out of his bedroom with Plagg stuffed in his shirt pocket. He would have a great time tonight if it killed him.

…..

Marinette almost turned back around at least four times on the way to Nino’s. How did she convince herself social interaction was better than her comfy bed, what a fool she was. Her feet were killing in the heels Alya forced her into and every time she complained, Alya responded, “Beauty is pain, my dear.” She said it so much (about 17 times by Marinette’s count) it became their mantra. But, if the blisters forming on her heels were any indication, tonight was shaping up to be a disaster.

 She would give anything to trade in her pointy shoes for Ladybug’s spandex. Leaping over buildings and doing patrols with Chat Noir was much preferable to whatever tonight had in store for her. As odd as it sounded, there was a nice routine in being a superhero. It was always the same: battle the akuma, listen to Chat’s terrible puns, use her lucky charm, destroy the akumatized object, and bye bye little butterfly.

Even patrols have taken on a pattern. It started as chance meetings between the two heroes on nights they couldn’t sleep and somehow evolved into a mapped out path they took three times a week to watch over Paris from above. She would be lying if she said Chat hadn’t grown on her over the years. In fact, especially after spending time with him on patrols, she found she rather enjoys his company, though she could do without the meaningless flirtations. The nights spent swinging over the skyline gave them plenty of time to talk about everything, their interests, their hobbies, slowly learning more and more about their partner. Upon her request, they made sure to stay away from any topics that were too revealing, even after all this time she was set on keeping their identities a secret. This didn’t stop Chat from toeing the line, to pry into her life. Though she never encouraged it, she couldn’t bring herself to truly get annoyed at the black cat for all of his questions.

“Mari?” Marinette’s head snapped up, losing her train of thought.

“Hmmm?”

“You totally spaced out for a minute there. Did you hear what I said?” Marinette shook her head sheepishly. “I said, we have to walk a bit quicker I think it’s about to rain.”

Marinette looked up and sure enough, the night sky was filled with clouds that looked ready to burst. At just that moment, bead of water began to fall mercilessly onto the streets. Alya and Marinette shrieked with laughter, running as fast as their footwear would permit them to avoid the rain. They reached the doorstep just before it really started to pour, thankfully they weren’t completely drenched. They shook out their hair and Alya rang the doorbell. “Are you ready?” Alya asked. Marinette didn’t even have a chance to answer before the door open and Alya pulled her inside. Oh well, there was no backing out now.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tikki gives Marinette another pep talk and Adrien arrives at the party.

 From the moment the door slammed shut behind them, Marinette could feel the house literally vibrating from the pulsing music blaring out of Nino’s speakers. The only lights were a couple of low wattage lamps and some strobe lights someone plugged in. Even with the poor lighting, Marinette could make out the tons of writhing figures of her classmates dancing on every surface they could find. Most held red plastic cups sloshing around, covering the ground in a layer of cheap booze. After opening the door, Nino returned to his place as the resident deejay. Rose and Juleka danced atop of a table, swaying against each other, paying no mind to the tempo of the music. Alix and Kim seemed to be engaged in a ferocious game of beer pong with Max keeping score and Mylene and Ivan were making out on the couch.

Marinette absolutely _loathes_ these situations. It’s as if anytime she hears the thumping sound of a bass, it becomes harder to breathe and her heart rate spikes. Marinette had never felt comfortable at these type of parties, when the music was so loud she could barely think, not to mention have an actual conversation. She never knew how to act or what to do with her hands when dancing so that usually left her awkwardly standing by the chip bowl waiting for the night to end and she was crazy to think tonight would be any different.

Quickly, she mumbled an excused to Alya about needed to dry off and raced up the stairs to find a bathroom, leaving a confused red-head staring up at her. After opening a few doors and seeing some things she would rather forget, Marinette finally found the bathroom at the end of the hall. She locked the door shut and sunk down onto the porcelain floor, hugging her knees to her chest. She willed her heartbeat to slow down taking in one deep breath after another.

Marinette felt something fly out of her purse and found herself staring at her kwami, her hands on her hips and the sternest expression her adorable little face could muster. It seemed like her pep talk was going to be more of a tough love lecture this time through. Tikki always did get cranky when it was past her bedtime. Even ageless magical entities needed their rest.

“Marinette! I thought we talked about this! Why aren’t you down at the party?!”

“I…I thought I was ready to do this. I thought I could get through one party but I can’t. It’s all too much, I don’t know what to do. And now I’m sitting on the floor of a bathroom…this is pathetic. You would think I would at least be able to fake being normal for one night.” She huffed looking down.

Tikki’s eyes softened, “Mari, I hate to break it to you but you’ll never be normal.” Marinette’s eyes met Tikki’s, “You’re Ladybug, you are the exact opposite of normal. You’re amazing, strong, creative, brave, and about a million other things. You are so much more than you give yourself credit for and I think actually letting yourself have fun at this party could be a step to finally see yourself for who you really are.” Tikki said looking at Marinette with her large blue eyes.

Marinette sighed, “I feel like you forget sometimes that I’m separate from the mask. All those things you said are Ladybug, not me. Without you, in those miraculous stones, I’d just be the stuttering, clumsy, nobody that I usually am.”

Tikki’s eyes narrowed, “Marinette, I cannot stand by and hear you speak like this! You are amazing. I chose you for a reason, sure transforming may give you some speed and agility but everything else is completely you. _You_ are what makes Ladybug, not the other way around.”

Marinette wasn’t sure if believed this, Marinette wasn’t the type of person people look up to like they did Ladybug, but she knew Tikki wasn’t messing around. She could put herself together and brave through one night to make her kwami happy. “Ok, I’ll do it.”

Tikki smiled, seeming satisfied with her response. Marinette stood up fixed her hair, stepping out into what could only be called complete chaos. She was about the head down the stairs when she saw the front door open, and in walked Adrien.

“Nope, nope, nope. I can’t do this.” Marinette said, already trying to head back into the safety of the bathroom.

Tikki’s tiny hands pushed against her back with all their might, in an attempt to prevent Marinette from running away once again. “Yes….You….Can!” she huffed.

Tikki was much more strong than that her tiny figure let on, successfully pushing Marinette to the edge of the staircase before reentering the purse. Teetering on the edge, Marinette accepted defeat and attempted to walk down, however, in true Marinette fashion, she tripped, falling face first down the stairs.

Marinette shut her eyes, bracing herself for the inevitable landing but it never came, she opened her eyes and felt herself in the arms of something very solid.

“Woah! You took a pretty big fall, are you okay?” a familiar voice asked. She looked up and found herself face to face with Adrien Agreste, who looked just as stunned as she felt. She froze, finally understanding the position she was in.  It seemed that during the tumble, she gained enough momentum to be propelled high enough off the ground for Adrien to catch her before hitting the floor. Now, she was currently being cradled in the arms of her long-term crush with her head against his chest. She could practically see Alya recording it on her phone in the background. Her face went as red as a tomato as she scrambled out of Adrien’s arms.

“T-thank y-you so much Adrien.” She stuttered before booking it into the kitchen. She really needed a drink.

Adrien had been at the party for approximately 1.5 minutes. He took in the dancing, lights, and his friends and felt the excitement bubbled up inside of him. Right now, he felt like an observer, just watching everything unfold in front of him, but hopefully a drink or two would fix that and he’d actually start having some fun. He waved at Nino who was too preoccupied with the music to show him around. He was about to go over to Alya to talk, they had recently been bonding over their shared interest (*cough* obsession) of Ladybug, when he noticed Marinette at the top of the stairs.

Her foot seemed to miss the first step and all of a sudden she was fall down. Adrien’s Chat-like reflexes (he internally smiled at the pun) kicked in and he jumped to the base of the stair case, Marinette rose in a slight arc before hitting the ground but before that could happen Adrien caught her in his arms. Feeling quite proud of himself, (heck, barely a minute into his first high school party and he’s already saved someone) he asked if she was okay.

She jumped out of his arms, as if she was touching hot coals, and headed towards the kitchen after saying a quick thank you. Adrien looked over in confusion, why did Marinette always act like that whenever he was around? From what he’s heard and seen as Chat Noir, she seems like such a confident and talented person, so why was it different when she spoke with him? Did he make her uncomfortable? Did she not want to be friends with him? Was she still mad about the gum incident with Chloe? Or even worse, did she think he was just like Chloe?! He really wanted to become friends with her, from what Alya and Nino have told him, she was great and nice enough to be friendly with anyone. So why didn’t she like him? Adrien sighed in dismay, maybe he’d be able to talk to her tonight and fix whatever he’s apparently broken. And with that, he heads through the crowd and towards the kitchen.   

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wonder what's gonna happen in the kitchen next chapter :). I hope you enjoyed!
> 
>  
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @greenbeele !


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien and Marinette get to know each other in the kitchen.

Marinette slammed her plastic cup back onto the table, waiting for Alix (who seemed to gladly accept the position of bartender) to pour her another drink, the pinked-haired girl obliged seeming in awe at how fast Marinette had downed that first cup. Quite frankly, Marinette was surprised herself, she’d never been much of a drinker save for those night’s when she and Alya switched out ice cream for some wine Alya managed to smuggle out of her house. Either way, she braved through the bitter taste of vodka, enjoying the warm feeling building in her stomach, at least now she could blame her flushed cheeks on the alcohol.

“Girl, don’t you think you should slow down, a little. Not that I’m complaining or anything, but you should at least eat something.” Alya advised sagely while passing her a bowl of pretzels. It seemed she was able to follow Marinette even on her mad dash out of Adrien’s arms, wanting to make sure her friend was okay before returning to the party. Marinette grabbed some, but not before Alix poured her yet another cup. If she had learned one thing from the past ten minutes at this party, it was that she could not do it sober, especially with Adrien floating around. But, that didn’t mean she wanted to pass out drunk on the kitchen floor.

Soon enough, she felt a pleasant buzz coming on and started to sip from her cup rather than chug, much to Alix’s dismay. It seemed to be great timing too, because that was when she spotted Adrien on his way to the kitchen after finally making his way through the makeshift mosh pit. In true Adrien fashion, he politely squeezed each teen, apologizing for the inconvenience every step of the way. Finally, he reached the kitchen and seemed to lock eyes with Marinette and make a beeline for her. The urge to flee was back in full force, but she remembered Tikki’s words of wisdom and stood her ground. The warm feeling was beginning to be switched out for white hot anxiety, so she took a hearty sip to cool her nerves.

Alix passed him a cup almost as soon as he got close which he accepted. “Hey Mari, you kind of ran out of there pretty fast. Are you okay? I just wanted to make sure I didn’t make you feel uncomfortable or anything back there.” He said while looking down and rubbing the back of his neck. Marinette’s heart almost melted at how absolutely endearing he looked, as if Adrien could possibly be anything but a gentleman.

By what was certainly a mix of her lucky kwami and the copious amount of drinks she had consumed, Marinette was able to string together a response. “Not at all! I guess I was just really shocked and the whole flight or fight instinct kicked in. But, I do want to thank you for catching me.”

Both Adrien, and Marinette herself seemed to be surprised at her uncharacteristically eloquent response, but Adrien was the first to recover. “I guess I should count myself lucky I didn’t experience your fight mode,” he joked.

_If only you knew _, Marinette mused.__

…

Adrien entered the kitchen with the incredibly pure intention of profusely apologizing to Marinette and perhaps even starting a real friendship with her. That was before he could sight of her. When he first made eye contact, Marinette looked like a deer in headlights, her big blue eyes growing even wider. When he got closer he gratefully took the cup Alix handed to him, deciding that if he really was going to do this whole teen thing he was all in. He took a gulp and started to ask if she was okay.

He expected the response he was used to, a short answer from his shy classmate probably due to her wanted to end any conversation with him as soon as possible. However, this was not what he got. It wasn’t as if she said anything out of the ordinary, but it was the way she said it, with confidence. Within the five minutes it took him to wedge his way into the kitchen Marinette seemed to take on a whole new persona, or should he say her real one. The one he had always been told about. The one who carried herself with confidence and kindness. Maybe, it was this change that brought out his Chat Noir side, wanting to test the waters with a joke without scaring her off.

“You say that as if you don’t believe I could take you.” Marinette said, her eyes filled with challenge. Once again Adrien was taken aback by this completely new person in front of him, but he recovered quicker this time. After all, Chat Noir was never one to back down from competition.

“I don’t know Marinette, I’m sure you’re strong and all but I think I could handle myself pretty well in a fight.” Being one half of the superhero team of Paris made Adrien pretty sure he could take on sweet, little Marinette. Plus, he wanted to continue this conversation for as long as possible. It was like he just unlocked a new side of Marinette’s character and he didn’t want to step back just yet.

“Dude, I don’t think you want to challenge Marinette. You should see her in gym, she is seriously jacked.” Alix said. “Buuuuuuutttt…. if you still have your doubts, I suggest an old-fashioned arm wrestle.”

“I’m game if you are” Marinette smirked.

“You’re on.”

Soon enough the kitchen counter was cleared and a small crowd had amassed waiting to watch the showdown.

“Sure you don’t want to back out now? It would be a shame if all these people saw you lose.” Marinette teased.

“Not a chance.”

“Alright, we’re going to have a fair fight, any dirty play will result in immediate disqualification.” Alya said from behind her phone as she had appointed herself referee and camerawomen. Adrien and Marinette grabbed hands and nodded.

“1…2…3…GO.”

Adrien would be lying if he said he wasn’t surprised by the amount of force that pushed against his hand as soon as Alya yelled go. He wasn’t expected it to be easy, but he certainly wasn’t expecting it to be this difficult. Through the strain he managed to steal a quick glance at Marinette, who was staring down at their hands, completely focused while biting her pink lip. In that moment, Adrien was completely taken by how pretty she looked, he would be a fool to say he didn’t notice how good she looked in her outfit when he first saw her in his arms, but now, seeing that look on face he felt his heart do a little jump. It seemed that moment of distraction was enough for Marinette to slam his hand down onto the table (though to be honest, it wasn’t looking too good for Adrien anyway) and the crowd erupted in applause and cheers before slowing returning to the party.

“I gotta hand it to you. You beat me fair and square.”

“God is that really the best you can do?” Marinette laughed. And with that, they fell into a casual sort of banter. They retrieved more drinks and just talked about everything they never got the chance to before. Adrien, was ecstatic to finally be having a real conversation with his classmate. At last, he was getting to know the funny and smart girl he’d heard so much about. It felt comfortable, even a bit familiar….

Adrien felt himself lean forward, not quite catching the last thing Marinette had said. Marinette leaned just a hair closer until they were millimeters apart. Once again Adrien caught himself staring at her lips, completely missing what she had repeated. The liquid courage seemed to kick in as he brushed a lock of Marinette’s hair behind her ear. He pondered closing the distance between them when he heard a shriek.

The pair jumped apart and stared at the door leading into the kitchen, only to find a furious Chloe Bourgeois with Sabrina lagging behind. Her face was beet red with her hands in fists at her side.

“HOW DARE YOU TRY TO KISS MY SWEET ADRIENKINS. WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!”

“Chloe, calm down…” Adrien started, he had long since gotten used to his “childhood friend’s” outbursts.

“DID YOU FILL HIM UP WITH ALCOHOL? THAT’S THE ONLY WAY POOR, DEFENSELESS, ADRIEN WOULD EVEN BE NEAR TRASH LIKE YOU.”

Adrien saw Marinette’s shoulders slump. “Now, hold on a second Chloe.”

“DID YOU HONESTLY THINK HE COULD LIKE A LOSER LIKE YOU? HE WAS PROBABLY JUST BEING NICE. ADRIEN. IS. MINE.”

“JUST SHUT UP CHLOE!” Adrien shouted, leaving Chloe shocked into silence. “Marinette is so much kinder than you’ll ever be and doesn’t deserve to be treated like this! If I had to choose, I would pick the short time I’ve spent with her than the years I’ve been forced to spend with you! So how about you do everyone a favor and leave.”

Chloe spun around and ran out the door, but not before Adrien saw the tears in her eyes. He really didn’t mean to be that harsh, but Chloe had to know she couldn’t get away with that. He’d gotten used to her treating him as if he were her property and usually just shrugged it off, but he couldn’t just stand by and watch her try to tear down Marinette. Was this why Marinette never spoke to him? Did some part of her believe the things Chloe said about her? That was impossible. There was no way Marinette could believe such complete and utter lies about herself. And yet…. He looked back and saw Marinette who seemed to want to run out the room as soon as possible.

“Marinette…” Whatever he was about to say was cut off by screams from the street. “Oh, shit.” He muttered.

“I’ve got to go.” He said before darting off into the crowd, not even realizing Marinette herself had already run off in the opposite direction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo I haven't updated in a while. Sorry about that I've been suffering from chronic procrastination (in the form of summer assignments) and writers block. But, I hope you enjoy this chapter!
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @greenbeele!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Booze and battling akumas definitely do not mix

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wowww look who has risen from the dead!!! I haven't updated in almost a year so let's hope this goes well. I hope you like it!

Chat and Ladybug have a recurring joke that while villains don’t take vacations Hawkmoth definitely took off the weekend, or she supposed they had a joke. In the many years they served as the protectors of Paris, they’d come to expect two to three akuma attacks a week, however, one on the weekend was unprecedented. Despite the slew of teenage drama from parties quite similar to this one, the teens had never heard so much as a peep from the purple-clad evil mastermind. So knowing this, you can understand how thrown off Marinette was when she heard chaos erupting from the city streets. At the very least, it was an excuse to leave the mess she had just made with Adrien and Chloe. Honestly, could she have made things any worse? What did she think, that Adrien was being anything more than polite and actually wanted to kiss her? At best, she made him mildly uncomfortable and at worst she had done as Chloe said and nearly taken advantage of his drunken state making Adrien never wanted to see her again. It was clear that he was simply trying to diffuse the situation when he stood up to speak to Chloe but Marinette made her escape before she could hear him explain to Chloe that he would never consider her anything more than some sad charity case. She couldn’t bear to face that kind of humiliation in front of the all of her classmates and opted to let that flight response take over rather than listen to her long-time crush explain that he had absolutely no interest in her.

She was in the midst of weaving through the crowd after shaking off a concerned Alya when she heard the screams outside; the tell-tale sign of an akuma attack. She wiped a tear and headed back to the bathroom for the second time that night. She shut and locked the door before opening her pursing and coming face to face with a very worried looking kwami.

“Marinette…” she started.

Marinette interrupted before Tikki could finish her sentence, “No time for another pep talk Tikki, saving the city is the priority right now.”

“Are you sure you’re up for this? Not just because of what Chloe said but you’ve also had a lot to drink tonight”

“I’m going to have to be, it’s not like we have much of a choice. Spots on,” she said with more conviction than she felt.

A familiar red light flashed and Marinette stared at herself in the mirror. Ladybug stared back at her, her sadness was evident but determination shone in her eyes. She might have royally screwed up tonight, but, she wasn’t going to let that get in the way of saving Paris. Taking a deep breath, she opened the bathroom window, leaping off into the night.

….

“Oh, shit” Adrien muttered. Of course, it was the night of his first high school party that Hawkmoth seemed to reevaluate his master plan and add weekends to the days he made Adrien Agreste’s life a living hell. And of course, it was Adrien’s fault he was in this situation in the first place. He might not consider himself sharpest of cats but anyone could put two and two together to see that Chloe’s exit and the akuma attack happened within seconds of each other. He knew he had gone too far, even as he was saying it, he wanted to shove the words back down his throat. It wasn’t as if what he was saying about Marinette was in any way false but he shouldn’t have come after Chloe as harshly as he did. After years of interactions, he knew that deep, _deep_ , down Chloe was a good person, a misguided person sure, but a good person. Invalidating their friendship in such a mean and public manner was something he desperately wished he could take back. Chloe was far from his favorite person but no one deserved to be treated like that and Adrien liked to think of himself as better than the cruel words he spoke.

Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time to dwell on his colossal social faux pas, there was an akuma to be taken care of and he could leave his lady waiting. His lady… he had been solely committed to his love for her for years, so what did tonight with Marinette mean? Where would have the night have gone if Chloe hadn’t interrupted them, would he have kissed her, did she even want him to? Was he that ready to give up what he had always presumed to be endless adoration for his Ladybug? He shook his head, all these thoughts were distracting him from the true problem at hand. Who would have thought that one high school party would mess him up this much? Sneaking into the nearest broom closet not inhabited by hormone filled teens, Adrien shut the door and pulled Plagg out of his shirt.

“Kid!” Plagg coughed. “Do you know how much your shirt reeks?! It smells like I’m being drowned in an actual ton of lavender.”

“Well, what did you expect? I had to do something to counteract the smell of Camembert. I smell like a walking cheese factory otherwise, so you know, this is your fault,” Adrien retorted.

“I am insulted! You should be honored to smell as majestic and decadent as Camembert,” Plagg gasped.

Holding back a chuckle, Adrien looked at his tiny kwami crossing his arms. “You know you can’t pull off looking angry right? Anyway, claws out Plagg”. In seconds he was Chat Noir and ready for a fight, using his cat-like stealth, he avoided the partygoers and vaulted out of Nino’s house.

….

Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, Ladybug searched through the madness on the streets, looking for the source of the destruction. Along the way, she noticed swarms of people gravitating towards some unknown destination. Their eyes appeared dead and devoid of all emotion, they moved slowly and seemed unresponsive. Shortly, she found herself at the base of the Eiffel tower were the herds of people seemed to be gathered around. At the top, was the akumatized civilian that could only be Chloe. Her appearance had changed, instead of her typical outfit and sunglasses, she wore intricate black and yellow armor with sharp metal spikes, vaguely resembling stingers, poking out of her sleeves. A black mask covered her eyes and she was clutching something Ladybug couldn’t make out in her hand.

“I am Queen Bee and you _will_ obey and you _will_ love me!” she shouted to the Parisians down below. Suddenly, the stingers shot out of her sleeve only to be replaced with new ones and darted through the streets looking for a target. Using her agility, Ladybug nimbly avoided getting hit but others were not as fortunate. As soon as they were hit, the fear in their eyes was replaced by a blank stare and their arms went limp as they moved closer towards Chloe. Ladybug swung her yo-yo and latched onto the tower with as much grace as a blind duck before noticing Chat Noir was not too far behind, using his staff to make his way up to meet her. Landing at the top, they saw Chloe, who seemed to have an expression between a smirk and a snarl.

“Oh look at that, its Paris’s famous superhero duo” she cooed sarcastically, “As if either of you could ever stand a chance against me”. She strut along the edge of the walking path and gestured down below, “Just look at all my adoring fans down below, they love me unconditionally, they would never tell me to leave,” her eyes dimmed for a moment before returning to their hard glare.

Chat flinched at that for a reason Ladybug could not discern but quickly bounced back and responded, “While I’m sure you’re the cat’s meow, I think you should consider buzzing off”. Ladybug rolled her eyes in her fighting stance, slightly dizzy from the buzz of alcohol. If she could depend on one thing it was Chat’s ability to make stupid one-liners.

Chloe paid Chat Noir no mind and stared down at the crumpled item in her hand. “They understand me better than Adriekins ever could. Well, he’ll see, they all will. I’ll make them understand how much I’m worth” With that, a purple visor materialized in front of Chloe’s face that was surely Hawkmoth telling her to focus on capturing their miraculous. She launched into the air, shooting stingers in every direction, hoping to strike one of the heroes. Both managed to dodge them with practiced expertise; Chat shot off to the left and Ladybug to the right. The best way to end this battle was to trap Chloe.

“Chat! The akuma has to be in the paper in her hand!” she yelled to her partner. He nodded in agreement and bounded towards Chloe, ready to fight when he got close in range. Unfortunately, whenever he got close enough, he was met with an onslaught of stingers and hastily jumped back. He stumbled back, uncharacteristically unbalanced. Ladybug fared no better, having tried to surprise her from behind. Chloe was too quick, turning to pummel the heroine with her fair share of stingers. She swung low to avoid the assault of spikes and narrowly missing hitting her head on steel. Putting her finger to her temple, she made a mental note, remember to never go out superheroing when tipsy. More importantly, how were they supposed to get to the akuma if they couldn’t reach it?

At a loss for a solution Ladybug yelled, “Lucky charm!” and narrowed her eyebrows as a very large magnet appeared in her hand. She looked around until her ladyvision came into focus. Soon, she noticed her yo-yo and a bar at towards the center of the tower were covered in red and black spots. Working quickly she used the rope of her yo-yo to fasten the magnet away from the bar.

“Hey Chloe, come over here!” she shouted, trying to get her attention off of an oddly uncoordinated Chat Noir.

“You will address me as your queen or not at all!” she retorted, barely taking her attention off of Chat.

“The only thing you are is a royal pain in the ass.” Ladybug scoffed. It seemed that dig was enough to get Chloe to charge towards her trap. By some gift of God, Ladybug managed to jump off the ledge, using her yo-yo to swing onto the other side of the magnet without bumping her head. Chat seemed to understand where she was going with this and quietly crept off the tower to come at Chloe from behind.

“How dare you,” she fumed sending a cascade of stingers in Ladybug’s direction only to have them all pulled to the magnet. Momentarily thrown off, Chloe stared down at her sleeve of stingers, giving Chat the opportunity to leap in from behind and grab the paper in her hand before jumping to safety next to Ladybug. Before Chloe could more out of the magnet’s way Chat made a move to tear the paper. After glancing down, he stiffened, hesitating for a moment before recovering and ripping it in two.

Confused but not one to let the akuma get away, Ladybug swiped it and put it into her yo-yo to deevilize it before shouting, “Bye, bye little butterfly,” and cleansing the city of destruction with her classic, “Miraculous Ladybug!” A pink light fell across the city restoring balance to the streets and citizens.

Chat Noir picked up a very dazed Chloe who promptly pushed him off. She looked down at the ground at the torn up piece of paper and quickly picked it up before rushing down the Eiffel tower, brushing away a tear. Before she left Ladybug caught sight of the image on either half, a childhood photo of Adrien and Chloe holding hands in a park. And with that, Marinette was Marinette again, remembering all the awful things that happened at the party. As much as she tried to compartmentalize when she was Ladybug, it was as if all the emotions of the night were flooding in. Chat Noir didn’t seem in much better spirits so once their ring and earrings beeped a moment later they forwent their typically fist bump in favor of a halfhearted wave before leaping off to find cover before they detransformed.

Landing on her balcony, Marinette went through her skylight and flopped onto her bed before letting her transformation wear off. Tikki flew beside her and gently patted her head, “Don’t worry Marinette, everything will be better tomorrow.” Exhausted from the long night, Marinette fell asleep as the sun began to rise over Paris, hoping her kwami was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhhhhhhhh


End file.
